NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 167 - Training Exercise 15
“I only realized after arriving on Liva Star that you had been hypnotized by someone using mental power. That person must have implanted some sort of suggestion in you. Think carefully about what you are thinking every time you attempt to break through,” said Mai Dongzi.
Upon hearing this, not only Durant but even Yu Guangxi had serious expressions. The two exchanged glances, understanding something that only the two of them could comprehend.
Yu Guangxi said, “Durant, explain the situation you encounter every time you want to break through to the captain in detail. Just because you can’t identify the problem doesn’t mean the captain can’t.”
Due to his inability to break through, Durant, who was once regarded as an elite in his family, was on the verge of being marginalized.
So, he began to describe his situation of being unable to break through. Initially, he thought it was his own issue, but now, looking back, he realized that something was indeed wrong.
Upon hearing Durant’s words, Yu Guangxi pondered for a moment but couldn’t identify the problem, so they all turned to Mai Dongzi, waiting for her to provide clarity.
Mai Dongzi had already begun to have her doubts; after listening to Durant’s situation, she felt certain.
“Every time you try to break through, do you always feel like you’re just a little bit short, as if it’s not the right time yet?” Mai Dongzi asked.
Everyone in the group was smart, especially Durant and Yu Guangxi. As soon as they heard Maidongzi’s question, they immediately understood.
Durant gritted his teeth and said, “Every time I feel like I want to break through, a thought always pops into my head that the timing isn’t right, and then I think about waiting until the opportunity is more mature before I try to break through.”
“Durant has a 2A cultivation potential, and with sufficient cultivation resources, he should have advanced to level five six months ago. The fact that he hasn’t advanced has led some to say that although his cultivation potential is great, his comprehension isn’t sufficient, which is why he can’t level up,” Yu Guangxi added.
Clearly, he had been schemed against; it seemed this was yet another episode of intrigue among the aristocratic families.
“Captain, can you determine how long I’ve been hypnotized and the level of the person who hypnotized me? Can you break it?” Durant asked calmly, quickly regaining his composure after his initial anger.
“The duration of your hypnosis should not exceed a year. The person’s mental ability should be around level five. I can try to break it,” Mai Dongzi replied.
Durant and Yu Guangxi exchanged glances, not bothering to hide their expressions. Everyone else noticed that Durant seemed to have some idea about the person who had hypnotized him.
No one else in the Phantom Squad spoke up to ask Durant who had plotted against him. Given Durant’s family background, it was highly likely that the person behind it was someone from his own family, and knowing this wouldn’t benefit them at all.
“It might be because I’ve been enhancing your mental strength during this time. After Durant’s mental strength increased, the effect of the hypnosis weakened a bit, which is why he started having thoughts of breaking through again,” Mai Dongzi said.
Unlike the other members, Mai Dongzi was determined to privately inquire about who the mental abilities user was.
To help Durant break the hypnosis, she would need to erase the mental imprint left by the person who hypnotized him, which meant that individual would likely sense something.
Since the training exercise for first to fourth-year students at the Imperial Capital University was such a big event, it would be easy to find out who was around Durant at that time and who helped him lift the hypnosis.
By doing this, Mai Dongzi would effectively incur the wrath of the mental abilities user, so she needed to clarify who might harbor resentment against her.
In fact, Mai Dongzi had noticed this issue the day Durant joined the Phantom Squad. She was aware that helping Durant break the hypnosis would attract trouble, which was why she had been hesitating.
Although she was not someone who feared trouble, she needed to consider whether this person was worth the hassle.
After spending a few days together, she was certain that Durant was worth her effort. Since she had made up her mind, she decided to act quickly and help him level up.
“Please, Captain, help me break the hypnosis,” Durant formally requested.
Such a formal request indicated that he would remember this favor from Mai Dongzi and would offer something in return.
Mai Dongzi’s motivation for doing this was simply to help the humans of the Dracula star system gain another mid-tier warrior; she was not interested in any rewards.
So she nodded dismissively and said, “I need to invade your mental sea with my mental energy to erase the mental imprint left by that person.”
For most people, it is difficult to accept someone else’s mental energy invading their mental sea, as it feels like laying oneself bare in front of someone wielding a sharp blade without any defenses.
If Durant couldn’t accept this, it would be his own problem.
If this had been a few days earlier, Durant would never have accepted so readily. But now, gritting his teeth, he knelt before Mai Dongzi, closed his eyes resolutely, and said, “Let’s do this!”
Mai Dongzi couldn’t help but laugh at Durant’s death-defying demeanor.
The other members of the Phantom Squad watched as she gently touched Durant’s forehead before withdrawing her hand and saying, “It’s done.”
Since Mai Dongzi had spoken so seriously about this matter, everyone thought it would be difficult. When they saw her merely stroke his forehead to resolve it, they all widened their eyes in disbelief.
Durant didn’t have time to feel anything else about the captain’s touch on his forehead when he sensed a gentle energy softly brushing through his mind. He felt a release in his mental space, as if some hidden constraint had disappeared, and suddenly his mind became clear.
“Once you have the opportunity to level up, I will assist you with sound therapy,” Mai Dongzi said.
Her words were mainly to help alleviate Durant’s psychological burden. In fact, the reason Durant had not leveled up in the past six months was not due to any issues with his cultivation level but because his “mental block” was preventing him from attempting to break through.
Given his current level, as long as he was free of that mental block and faced a trigger point, leveling up would be a natural outcome.
However, Mai Dongzi did not anticipate that her words would become a trigger point.
As soon as she finished speaking, Durant shifted from kneeling to sitting cross-legged, and his aura began to fluctuate.
Mai Dongzi exchanged a glance with Yu Guangxi, who quickly understood Durant’s situation. He discreetly moved the two people close to Durant away and informed the rest of the Phantom Squad about Durant’s condition to prevent any interruptions during his leveling up.
At this moment, Durant’s timing for leveling up was not ideal. They had been traveling for over ten hours. Although they were full and hydrated, his physical stamina had not fully recovered, and they couldn’t use energy potions, making it easy for him to become weak during the leveling process.
Therefore, Mai Dongzi had to fulfill her promise and guide Durant’s leveling up using sound therapy.